Tanuki
by HelpMeI'mBaka
Summary: Kenshin always did have a soft spot for those cute little raccoon dogs...


**Disclaimer:** Rurouni Kenshin belongs to Nobuhiro Watsuki. And all those other rich people, Sony etc. I do not own it. ...But I will someday. Just as soon as I master the art of identity theft... Kukkukukuuu...

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**Tanuki**

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Little Shinta always loved stories. Every day he would wait for his Tou-san to come in from the fields and tell him a bedtime story right before he drifted off to sleep. He especially enjoyed the ones about tanukis.

When Shinta was just a baby, his mother had made a stuffed tanuki for him. He had carried it around with him everywhere he went. Tenten was what he called it. He'd hear the tales about mischevious tanuki living happily in the forest and playing tricks on unsuspecting passers-by, and he would always imagine it was Tenten who could do all of these things. Of course, Tenten would _never_ play a trick on him. Tenten was his best friend.

_Yes, Shinta had always loved tanukis..._

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Shinta's parents died of cholera. First, his father. Then, his mother. Shinta was heartbroken, he felt that he had died along with them. He didn't cry, not at first. He just sat there, refusing food, not talking to anyone. Tenten, he would not let out of his grasp. Eventually the people were able to make him eat something, but only a tiny bit, just enough not to starve. After a while, they just left him alone.

Then, one day, Shinta simply stood up and went outside. He had to close his eyes for a moment, getting used to the bright light of the sun. Gazing about him, taking in all of his surroundings, he set his eyes upon the forest. Had it always been so close by? _Kaa-san said tanukis live in the forest._ Shinta's eyes slowly began to fill with tears. _Kaa-san. Tou-san._ Without stopping, without thinking at all, he stumbled forward and then ran, straight into the woods. He dissapeared among the trees.

Tenten was left behind, left behind with everything else.

Later that night, as Shinta cried out for his family, huddled alone beneath a tree, he would realize that Tenten was gone as well. He was now completely alone. Shinta hugged himself tightly, sobbing louder, wishing that his friend was there to comfort him. He was all alone, he knew that now, and his imagination was not able to tell him otherwise. There was no family for him anymore, no Tenten, no magical racoon dogs to poof his parents back to him, telling him it had all been a trick.

_Shinta had always loved tanukis..._

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Shinta stayed in the forest for many weeks, surviving on wild berries and fish he managed to catch from the stream. Luckily, the weather was warm, and he was perfectly fine sleeping on the ground in piles of leaves.

One day, a rustling in the bushes caught Shinta's attention. Turning around to find the source, he saw two small black eyes peering out at him, matched with a little black nose. _...tanukis live in the forest... _He managed to coax the creature out of hiding by luring it with some of the fish he had caught earlier. The tanuki quickly grabbed the food from Shinta's hand, then turned tail and ran away, it's mouth now full of fish. For a moment, the animal paused and had a look back at this strange little boy. Then, it hurried off on its way.

The tanuki came back the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that. Continuing with his routine offering of food, Shinta had his new friend relatively tame after a few days. The tanuki eventually became so trusting of the boy that he was able to run his fingers through her fur and pet her without her shying away.

And even though he still missed his parents very much, he found a great deal of comfort in knowing that there was at least one person- yes, he regarded animals as people too -who cared about him at all.

_Shinta had always loved tanukis..._

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Not long after he had befriended the tanuki, a group of slave traders found Shinta and took him away. He never saw his tanuki friend again.

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Kenshin sat alone in the forest, the name Shinta was long ago discarded. He had been wandering around the countryside for six years now, trying to atone for all the terrible things he'd done as a hitokiri. As he stared into the flames, waiting for his meal to cook, he suddenly pulled some out of the fire and held it out into the darkness. Being an expert swordsman, he was able to sense the animal's ki before it even made an audible sound. The young racoon dog stepped timidly into the light and took the fish from Kenshin's hand. It stayed right where it was to eat the meal, as Kenshin slowly lifted his hand to stroke the creature. He had become much more in tune with nature, and did not need days to gain the animals' trust like he had before. Kenshin was glad that he could again be around innocent creatures like these, who thought nothing of murder and war.

_Yes, he always had loved tanukis..._

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Kaoru stood outside in the cold, angry and trying to stifle her tears. They had just gone too far this time. Always teasing her, calling her ugly, calling her a sweaty little girl. They had just kept on and on, and then Yahiko had to have that outburst. _Hey, stop looking at Kenshin that way, you'll give him nightmares! No self-respecting man would get caught dead with a ugly old tanuki girl like you!_

Trying her best, she just couldn't stop crying. Yes, she knew Yahiko was only trying to get her angry, but there was some tiny little voice in the back of her mind, telling her that he was right... Kaoru heard the door slide open and shut behind her. She was about to whirl around, but strong arms pulled her into an embrace.Kaoru gasped as she realized who was holding her.

_'Please don't cry, Kaoru-dono. This one always has loved tanukis...'_

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End file.
